Echoes of History: Press Kit and Quick Facts

Book quick facts

Descriptions you can use

One line (about 25 words)

A critical investigation into ancient civilizations, sacred texts and the possibility that humanity’s many gods preserve the memory of one Creator.

Short description (about 60 words)

Eleven thousand years ago, people who had not yet learned to farm raised carved pillars at Göbekli Tepe and then buried them. Echoes of History follows the question of what they were reaching toward, through Egypt, Mesopotamia and the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, labelling every claim as evidence, scholarly model or the author’s own belief.

Long description (about 180 words)

Why do the oldest stories on Earth sound so alike? Eleven thousand years ago, on a hill in southern Turkey, people raised great carved pillars at Göbekli Tepe. Thousands of years later, Egyptian priests described one hidden creator behind hundreds of gods, Sumerian scribes listed kings who reigned before a great flood, and three scriptures told of one God who spoke to humankind.

Echoes of History follows that thread across ten millennia: the Sphinx and the Serapeum, the Enuma Elish and the Sumerian King List, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Joseph and the Exodus, and the Torah, the Gospel and the Qur’an. It asks a bold question: could humanity’s many gods preserve a fading memory of one Creator?

The book is open about what it cannot prove. Established findings, mainstream scholarly models and the author’s own conclusions are kept apart, the counter-evidence is cited, and readers are asked to check the evidence rather than take the author’s word for it.

Main themes

• Göbekli Tepe and the oldest evidence of religion
• How the ancient gods came to be, and why one became many (Atum in Egypt, Anu in Sumer)
• Creation between science and scripture: the Big Bang and fine-tuning
• Ancient Egypt: the Sphinx, the Pyramid Texts, the Serapeum and the Exodus
• Mesopotamia: the Enuma Elish, Sumerian creation and the flood traditions
• Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Joseph as history, tradition and scripture
• God in Judaism, Christianity and Islam and the history of monotheism

How the book handles evidence

Every claim in the book and on this site is placed in one of four categories, so readers can disagree with one part without rejecting all of it:

• Established: observed, measured, excavated or written in a source from the time.
• Mainstream theory: what most specialists currently conclude, reported accurately but not endorsed.
• Alternative or debated theory: a minority or contested reading, set out fairly.
• The book’s view: the author’s own interpretation, always marked as such.

Faith should not need me to be afraid of evidence.

Jossef Salman, from the Preface of Echoes of History

About the author

Short bio (about 50 words)

Jossef Salman is the author of Echoes of History: Ancient Wisdom, Sacred Scripture, and the One God Behind Them All. A Muslim writer on ancient history and comparative religion, he reads Jewish and Christian sources as historical evidence of great value and labels every claim as evidence, scholarly model or belief.

Long bio (about 120 words)

Jossef Salman writes about where we came from, what God is, and why every civilization reached for something beyond itself. His work moves between archaeology, Egyptology, Mesopotamian history, scripture, cosmology and theology, the fields that usually stay apart. He is a Muslim, and says so before he says anything else about religion; he reads the Torah and the Gospel as historical evidence of great value and tries to read them as carefully as his own scripture.

His book Echoes of History (Second Edition, 2026) begins at Göbekli Tepe and follows the question of God through Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Abrahamic scriptures. The second edition revises passages from the first, including how Egyptian hieroglyphs work and the date range for the Sphinx’s weathering. Under the pen name Jossef S., he also writes sapphic and general romance.

Images

You may use these images to illustrate coverage of the book and author. Click an image to open the full-size file.

Book cover, Second Edition

Author portrait

Suggested interview questions

1. What made a hill in Turkey the starting point for a book about God?
2. Your book argues that many gods may preserve the memory of one Creator. What evidence points that way, and what evidence points against it?
3. Why label every claim as established, mainstream, debated or your own view?
4. How does a Muslim author read the Torah and the Gospel as historical sources?
5. What did you change in the second edition, and why?
6. What should readers who disagree with you take from the book?

Where to buy

Some links on this page are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, Jossef Salman earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.

Interviews, review copies and book clubs

For interview requests, review copies, podcast appearances or book-club questions, please use the contact page. Answers to common questions about the author and the book are on the Author FAQ.